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In fact:)

At 5000 or even our best 8-9000 attendee year, WE"RE all a minority of folks attending rallies. At about 39000-40000 MOA member strong, most still are absent, various reasons. I am so very glad to be a rally attendee and won't let anytime of year get by without attending. One thing certain, those folks not attending have reasons, all types and just miss out. Willing to bet, move the rally dates, they still are absent! Randy

Straight up, you can't get a true picture of people's thoughts about the super hot rally's by stacking the deck ; as I learned in my psychology training regarding research, "figures don't lie but liars do figure". It's like getting a dealer customer satisfaction survey which asks you if you are Satisfied, Very Satisfied, or Totally satisfied. In short, this is NOT straight pool.

Fact: numerous people ended up in the hospital due to the heat in Bloomsburg as well as in Sedalia! (I was one of them)

Fact: many people do not want to be wandering around in 100 degree heat, regardless of their physical condition.

Fact: the ."we've always done it this way" argument is irrelevant and idiotic; it simply indicates rigidity in thinking.

Fact: if the rally were to be scheduled for sometime other than July, the vendors would alter their schedules accordingly, (that is how a free market economy functions) and our vendors are NOT going to miss an opportunity to be at a national if it is scheduled another time.

Proof of this is the fact that I opted NOT to take my vaction in July for Sedalia, but rather scheduled the second week in September (to the Dragon) because I am NOT interested in going to rallys or other events in 100 degree heat.

It's time the leadership chooses to address the "elephant in the room" and admits that July is too damn hot.

Unappologetically,

Will 3 Hawks

Have you written the BOD directly and expressed your opinion? If not, you need to. If you have, then you have had your input.

You can continue with this tactic,

but I doubt that it is an effective way to get the change you desire.

Perhaps you are in the minority and it will never be changed. From all appearances in this thread, there is not a large enough number of members to think that it will be sometime other than in July.

At 5000 or even our best 8-9000 attendee year, WE"RE all a minority of folks attending rallies. At about 39000-40000 MOA member strong, most still are absent, various reasons. I am so very glad to be a rally attendee and won't let anytime of year get by without attending. One thing certain, those folks not attending have reasons, all types and just miss out. Willing to bet, move the rally dates, they still are absent! Randy

I don't think the date has much to do with the number in attendance. If anything, the July dates improve attendance. Time, expense and distance is the reason more people don't attend. How can a member justify to their spouse that vacation time and vacation money should be spent on attending a rally when the same vacation time and money could be spent with the family at the beach or in the mountains? The family frequently considers that the member is being selfish. The time and expense of traveling thousands of miles to attend a rally is also a reason for many members not attending the rally. I think you will find that a large number of the attendees are from within 500 miles of the rally. My self imposed 500 mile limit is there because I don't want to be more than a long day's ride from home in case of an emergency. At my age, the emergency could be at home or it could be me.

'You can say what you want about the South, but I almost never hear of anyone wanting to retire to the North.

Yes, weather is a factor

But, honestly...............who beyond the retired have the opportunity to attend a national, unless it's local? In this day and age, vacation time is getting to be a rare commodity and how many really can take it? This isn't 1976, my friends. We don't work for large companies with large staffs that can absorb a one and two week vacation by an employee.

Switching the time of the Rally might be good for some folks relative to heat, but it's not going to change the reality for the non-retired. I'll attend my next national, when I have the chance, spring, summer or fall, but the deciding factor will be distance and time from work.

But, honestly...............who beyond the retired have the opportunity to attend a national, unless it's local?

Just us old rally folks. I attended every one except Moodus between 1984 and when I retired in 2005. So for me, 21 out of 22 while working a full time job with two or three weeks vacation a year. It is just priorities. Motorcycling, MOA, and friends I saw once a year was a priority for me.

Paul Glaves - "Big Bend", Texas U.S.A
"The greatest challenge to any thinker is stating the problem in a way that will allow a solution." - Bertrand Russellhttp://www.bigbend.net/users/glaves

But, honestly...............who beyond the retired have the opportunity to attend a national, unless it's local?

Since you asked.... I am not retired and have signed up for 2 weeks vacation to attend the national next year. Oh yea, that's after taking a 12 week sabbatical beginning Jan 2013 to tour Central America. Must be one of the lucky few.

Dick
R1200GS '08
"Hey, where you goin'?" "Nowhere in particular." "Man, I wish I was you." "Well, Hang in there..."

Almost retired:)

Trying hard to finish my career this year. But, all my working years, I too have had the desire to do rallies and take time off work for it. Usually the more years in, the more vacation perks allowed. I understand many companies limit this. Wife rides too but cannot always go(another career in her), but my Daughter grew up on the back of my bike, traveling about the USA. We had the best of times. She rides a Beemer today of her own and is in her own Navy Career as a F18 Hornet driver/F650 too. She cannot attend rallies either, or very few. Busy, but wish she could. Oregon, I'm there. Randy

Just us old rally folks. I attended every one except Moodus between 1984 and when I retired in 2005. So for me, 21 out of 22 while working a full time job with two or three weeks vacation a year. It is just priorities. Motorcycling, MOA, and friends I saw once a year was a priority for me.

Paul,

I understand and appreciate that you and Voni are truly dedicated to the future of the MOA. And, if it's your priority, most folks can make a Rally. However, I still stand by my original point that vacation time is a vanishing commodity for many of us.

As such, I doubt that changing the date of the rally will greatly increase attendance. The Rally's near the coasts or tourist spots (Rocky's or Cascades) will likely attract the highest attendance due to local population or the attractions. Those rally's in the mid-west or plains will be more lightly attended. But, you still visit the family members in KS or MO, don't you? Accordingly, the MOA rotates the rally site. Some years you have a big attendance. Some years it's small.

BTW - This year in the Bloomsburg area, we had 2-wks of high heat (cooler than last year), but still uncomfortable. It was near the time of the power outage around DC which made folks in that area realize the value of AC (but not the fallacy of deregulated utilities and their subcontracted repair crews). Other than that, it's been a pretty decent summer with dry and wet periods. July 2011 was just a bad time to be in Bloomsburg.

I understand and appreciate that you and Voni are truly dedicated to the future of the MOA. And, if it's your priority, most folks can make a Rally. However, I still stand by my original point that vacation time is a vanishing commodity for many of us.

As such, I doubt that changing the date of the rally will greatly increase attendance. The Rally's near the coasts or tourist spots (Rocky's or Cascades) will likely attract the highest attendance due to local population or the attractions. Those rally's in the mid-west or plains will be more lightly attended. But, you still visit the family members in KS or MO, don't you? Accordingly, the MOA rotates the rally site. Some years you have a big attendance. Some years it's small.

BTW - This year in the Bloomsburg area, we had 2-wks of high heat (cooler than last year), but still uncomfortable. It was near the time of the power outage around DC which made folks in that area realize the value of AC (but not the fallacy of deregulated utilities and their subcontracted repair crews). Other than that, it's been a pretty decent summer with dry and wet periods. July 2011 was just a bad time to be in Bloomsburg.

I don't disagree with a word of this, except I'm still suspicious about that Bloomsburg stuff.

Paul Glaves - "Big Bend", Texas U.S.A
"The greatest challenge to any thinker is stating the problem in a way that will allow a solution." - Bertrand Russellhttp://www.bigbend.net/users/glaves

I don't disagree with a word of this, except I'm still suspicious about that Bloomsburg stuff.

does anyone know how many well appreciated bottles of cold water were handed out by the oasis crew? The logistics and planning of this rally were excellent. Not perfect, as nothing ever is. Just excellent.

It is about priorities, especially with the younger members who have families with younger children. When vacation time and money is limited, quality vacation time with family is their priority. If they make rallies a priority over family, they need their vacation time so they can visit their children they do not have custody of.

'You can say what you want about the South, but I almost never hear of anyone wanting to retire to the North.

It is about priorities, especially with the younger members who have families with younger children. When vacation time and money is limited, quality vacation time with family is their priority. If they make rallies a priority over family, they need their vacation time so they can visit their children they do not have custody of.

In Rhinebeck I rented a RV to use as our home base and brought the entire family. They had a ball. 12 years later my son came to Bloomsburg on his own bike.

He still talks about how much fun he had at the rally. When asked about the heat he says, yeah it was hot but we found a swimming hole so it was no big deal.

I wonder if when he gets to the current average age of the MOA member if there will even be a MOA or a National Rally.

Me too?

I have two young folk at ages 29and 30, riding BMWs, but are so busy with their Navy Careers, I wonder too. They have so little time to attend the national rallies anymore. They do some local ones still. They are in Virginia Beach and I am ever so Dad like, reminding them about rallies. One coming up for them in their backyard soon, local rally. Warbirds and Beemers Rally. So fitting for them, as they both fly Warbirds/Ride F650s. F18She, C2He, respectively. There is a GAP of ages, between our avg.ages and the young I see coming along and present at rallies. AM I missing the point, or are we a dying org.? HATS OFF to Paul/Voni and their efforts at Camp Gears, but that is a small group of young folks coming along, taking part. "I don't think I have missed" seeing the young at rallies, they simply are very few. The GAP exists. My two young riders and a third I am trying to commit to riding her own, won't be allowed to forget the "MOA and are constantly reminded of what Dad does in his spare time. I hope it wears off on 'em more. Randy